


Romance Just Is

by dafeedil



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Anal Sex, Awkward Sexual Situations, Boys In Love, Established Relationship, First Time, Fluff and Smut, M/M, Romantic Gestures, Schmoop, Sexual Tension, not in the stereotypical way or whatever tho, so many misadventures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-14
Updated: 2016-04-14
Packaged: 2018-06-02 06:24:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6554617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dafeedil/pseuds/dafeedil
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"The odds are against me." Michael mopes. "I’m never gonna get my dick in you."</p><p>
  <em>Or, the five times that Michael and Calum tried (and failed) to set the mood, and the one time they got it right.</em>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Romance Just Is

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cherryraindrops](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherryraindrops/gifts).



> First and foremost, HAPPY 20th BIRTHDAY TO EMI! My moon and my stars, the loml, the Michael to my Calum!!! I hope your day is as beautiful and bright as you are!!
> 
> Here's your roundabout malum first time fic I told you I'd write one day ;)

**-1-**

There’s been _very_ few times in Michael’s whole entire life where he’s felt happier than he is in the moments that he’s with Calum. It’s been like that for years, of course, ever since they met back when they were just nine years old. But that fact’s been _especially_ evident to Michael for the last several months. Ever since he and Calum finally started _dating_.

Michael can’t remember ever being this happy and content with his life. Sure, when he was younger _everything_ was an adventure and _anything_ could make him feel on top of the world, but Michael thinks he’s definitely lucked out in the soulmate department. With Calum by his side since they were still in grade school, Michael hasn’t had very many grey days at all. Even on the rare occasion that something brings him down, Calum always finds ways to bring him back up again.

They’re seventeen now, almost eighteen, and when they finally got together it felt like a hell of a long time coming. Everyone else saw it before they did—go figure. He remembers telling his parents about how they decided to make things official when he got home that night almost half a year ago, and how he’d watched with a dropped jaw as his mother had just stuck out her hand and smiled triumphantly when his father slapped a twenty dollar bill in her hand. He remembers telling Calum about it the next morning on their walk to school and how his boyfriend had laughed so hard tears visibly shone in his eyes as he said his mom and sister had a similar bet going for weeks leading up to that night.

It feels like they haven’t stopped smiling since. Michael’s never been happier.

It’s cloudy outside today, the gloomy threat of rain hanging above them, but Michael doesn’t care all that much. How could he, on a Sunday afternoon with a lapful of his brown haired, brown eyed boyfriend? That’s a much more worthy thing to care about.

They’re at Calum’s house, down in the semi-basement that used to be the family game room but has sort of become Michael and Calum’s hideaway. It’s still technically a game room, Michael guesses, it’s just that everyone else has sort of lost interest in it besides the two of them. Not that Michael’s complaining—they come down here a lot and Calum’s mom trusts them enough to even let them shut the door while they’re alone. Michael can’t ask for more than that.

Nobody’s home now, though, Michael doesn’t think. Calum’s sister might be, but Mali never comes down here to bother them much, anyway, so it hardly counts.

Hence the reason why Calum’s got his legs positioned on either side of Michael’s hips, sitting back on his thighs. It feels warm in the room, stuffy and humid from how long they’ve been kissing all hot and heavy like this. Michael’s lips feel raw and abused from it, and he can feel how short his breaths are coming, but he can’t bring himself to stop for a second. Calum looks too good, _feels_ too good against him.

His boyfriend’s hands tangle in his hair up under his beanie, wrestling the thing out of the way. Michael opts for sliding his open palms along Calum’s thighs, loving the way the muscles twitch and seize so easily under the contact. Michael’ll never get used to the way Calum responds to him, to even the lightest of his touches.

Calum finally pulls away, panting hard and wet against Michael’s still-open mouth. Huffing out a laugh, he closes his beautiful eyes and rests their foreheads together as he inhales and exhales slowly, trying to catch his breath again. Michael attempts to follow along, to regroup himself, too, but it’s hard with Calum being all distracting and sexy on top of him. Calum’s got the most beautiful flush spreading across his cheeks and neck, and Michael knows it’d be covering his chest, too, if only he could see underneath the boy’s shirt. Michael can’t look away.

"Hey." Calum starts, out of breath. "Do you think maybe we could, um. Fuck, I’m." He blushes impossibly harder, opening his eyes to look down at Michael’s chest. Michael hopes he can’t see the way his heart is hammering against his ribcage, fighting to escape.

When Calum still struggles to find the words, Michael frowns a bit, reaching to tilt Calum’s chin up with his thumb. "What’s wrong, Cal?"

Calum’s eyes go wide, and he shakes his head. "No, no, nothing’s _wrong_ , I just. I’ve been thinking about something? And you don’t have to say yes, I just know if I don’t ask _now_ then I’ll lose the courage to, or whatever." He laughs nervously, and Michael’s heart starts pounding for a different reason. Now, _he’s_ anxious.

He tries to keep it cool when he nods, licking over his bottom lip quickly. He keeps his eyes on Calum’s face, watching as the boy sucks in a deep breath, and then lets his words out all in one exhale. Michael doesn’t catch any of them.

"What was that?"

Calum sighs, but it doesn’t sound irritated, just shy, maybe. "I want to go all the way. Um, with you. I-if you want that, too, obviously."

Michael’s eyes go wide in surprise, because that’s truthfully the last thing Michael was expecting to hear. Calum still looks so sheepish, curling his fingers in the strands of Michael’s hair similar to the way he does to the rips in his jeans whenever he’s nervous, or humiliated.

They’ve had sex before. Okay, well, maybe not by half of their school’s definition, but Michael would argue that having Calum’s dick in his mouth pretty regularly would constitute having sex. And it’s not just him doing the giving, either—Calum _loves_ to reciprocate.

It’s just that they’ve never had _sex_ sex before. Like, the kind involving lube and condoms and penetration, or whatever. The kind that everyone actually _counts_ as sex (which is totally ridiculous, in Michael’s sometimes-humble opinion).

And it’s not that they’ve been saving themselves or putting it off for the right time, necessarily, because Michael knows that so long as his first time is with _Calum_ , the time and place doesn’t matter. Because it _will_ feel right, no matter what, if it’s with Calum.

It’s just that they haven’t tried it yet. Not with each other, and definitely not with anybody else before, so it would be the first time for _both_ of them. Which is pretty special, Michael thinks. It’ll be a hell of an experience for them both. They’ve been each others’ firsts for everything else—it makes sense that they’d be each others’ firsts for something like sex.

The fact that they’ve never been with anybody else also helps to ease his mind a bit because at least Michael knows that Calum isn’t asking to have sex with him simply because the younger boy feels pressured to keep up with Michael’s experience, or something. Since they’ve only ever experienced _each other_. Sort of makes it more intimate that way, too, maybe.

"Shit, really?" Michael asks, feeling the stupid grin that’s already fighting its way onto his face.

Calum rolls his eyes, but the signs of his nervousness are lessening, so that’s a good thing. "Shut up, _yes_ , really. I want to give that to you." He smiles softly down at Michael, and he pets his hair fondly. "I love you, you know."

Michael still goes all gooey inside when Calum says those words to him—has ever since the first time the sentence came out. He coos, cupping Calum’s face and holding him steady so that he can lean in and press a sweet kiss to his boyfriend’s mouth. It hurts a little against his bruised lips, but in the best way.

"I love _you_." Michael whispers back, because he knows how much Calum needs to hear it when he gets all vulnerable like this. "I’d like to give you that, too."

Calum beams, bringing his hands from Michael’s hair to instead play with the buttons at the top of his school shirt. His voice is significantly lower and more confident when he asks, "What about right now? Would you give me that right now?"

"Seriously?" Michael asks, his dick giving a little interested twitch in his pants. He’s calmed down a lot during the time their conversation has taken, but he’s still pretty hard, and he can tell from a quick glance down at Calum’s crotch that his boyfriend is, too.

Calum smirks, wiggling himself off of Michael’s lap and twisting around to lie down on his back against the sofa cushions. Michael swallows hard at the sight, following him quickly and settling between Calum’s legs to get comfy.

Michael doesn’t have much of a chance to _get_ comfy, though, since Calum only allows him a few rough kisses before he’s patting at Michael’s shoulder, urging him to back up a few inches.

"Do you have anything with you?" Calum asks, sounding doubtful.

Michael’s brows furrow. He doesn’t have lube, but that’s fine, since he knows Calum keeps some in his nightstand upstairs. It’ll be a serious walk of shame if he happens to run into Mali on his way to get it, but whatever, it would be worth it.

He _does_ remember that he has a condom, though, surprisingly. His feels his face light up at the realization, and he kisses Calum hard before he pushes off back onto his heels, digging around in his back pocket for his wallet.

"You’re kidding." Calum snorts when Michael pulls the crinkled, foiled square out from its private slot in his wallet. It’s pretty embarrassing, Michael recognizes, and _really_ corny. He can’t even remember who gave him the damn thing as part of their really weak attempt at sex education. Not his dad, he doesn’t think. His uncle, perhaps? Or maybe his older cousin, who was having so much sex that Michael would sometimes see multiple girls come and go during the two-day weekend visits Michael and his parents would make out to their family’s house.

"I wish." Michael laughs, looking at the foil packet he’s been carrying around with him for years and years. "It looks ancient."

Calum stills then, frowning slightly. His eyes are trained on the condom, and the longer he looks, the more disappointment Michael can see appearing in the boy’s eyes.

"What?"

"You’re right about how old it looks." Calum rubs his hand down his face and sighs. "Are you sure it’s still, like, usable? Can’t those things go bad?"

Michael groans, rotating the packet over to look at the expiration date. He hopes and prays that it’ll be fine, but today is apparently not their day.

A year and a half ago could have been, though.

"Fuck." Is all Michael needs to say, before Calum bursts out into laughter. Michael can’t help but join in, because the whole thing _is_ sort of lame and ridiculous. Making a dramatic show of it, Michael tosses the expired condom into the wastebasket beside the couch, collapsing back into Calum’s embrace like he’s just done the most difficult thing that a kid his age ever could. "Rest in peace, little guy."

Calum chuckles, and Michael smiles when he feels the vibration ricocheting through Calum’s chest and against Michael’s cheek. He wraps his arms more securely around Calum’s waist, and in return, Calum starts playing with his hair again.

"Don’t even worry about it." Calum assures him. "We’ll just be more prepared next time, alright?"

Michael looks up, resting his chin on Calum’s chest so they can see each other better. "You still wanna have sex with me?"

Calum rolls his eyes. "One little mishap isn’t the end of the world, Mikey." He squirms, encouraging Michael to lift himself up, and when he does, Calum slides his body down the couch until his face is directly below Michael’s, his legs wrapped back around Michael’s hips. It feels incredibly like where they belong. "It doesn’t change how I feel about doing this. I meant it when I said that I wanted to give you everything."

Michael’s heart feels like it swells to ten times its original size right then. He can’t believe Calum wants that with him. It’s still so surreal to him, sometimes, that Calum even loves him back, although Michael’s never once doubted it whenever Calum has vocalized as much.

If Calum wants to give Michael everything, well then. Michael’s just going to have to make it _perfect_ for him.

**-2-**

Calum has soccer games on most Friday nights. Sometimes he has other games during the week, but Friday night games are always at home, so it’s a lot easier for Michael to attend them, which he’s grateful for. He might not know much about the sport aside from what he’s picked up from video games and Calum’s excited babbling, but Calum loves it with nearly every fiber of his being, and he’s expressed multiple times how much it means to him when Michael shows up to watch him play.

So needless to say, Michael’s always there.

The first time he came to a game as Calum’s _boyfriend_ , Calum had told him afterwards how _nervous_ he was to mess up, how it had felt so much different having his boyfriend watching him rather than just his best friend. How nice Cal had said it was to get a congratulatory kiss after the game instead of a tight hug that had really always felt way more intimate and special than any ordinary hug between friends should.

The other thing about Calum having soccer games on Friday nights is that they end when Calum’s parents are still away at work. Which is why Michael isn’t surprised when Calum gets this knowing smirk on his face as he meets up with Michael outside the locker room after he’s finished showering and changing into clean sweats. Why he isn’t all that shocked when Calum leans in close and whispers, "My place is empty. You should come over."

Michael was intending on coming over, anyway, and they both know that. But the lilt to Calum’s voice suggests certain _activities_ , and Michael grins stupidly right away.

"What about Mali?" Michael barely remembers to ask ten minutes later, when Calum’s working his house key into the lock after their short drive to Calum’s place. He smells like soap, and Michael can practically see the physical exhaustion in each of Calum’s back muscles when he finally pushes the front door open. Calum had a tough game. They _barely_ scraped by with their 1-0 victory.

Calum shakes his head, pulling Michael through the door and shutting it behind them. Michael doesn’t wait for Calum’s signal, just kicks his own shoes off and puts them on the designated rug in the foyer before he starts for the hallway that leads to the living room.

"School trip." Calum clarifies as he heads into the adjoining kitchen. "She won’t be home ‘til Sunday. You want some food?"

He only hums in response, but Calum sets to heating up some leftovers anyway. Michael recognizes the smell that starts wafting through the room as Calum’s mother’s pot roast from a few nights ago, and he laughs when he realizes how often he eats food over here in comparison to his own home. It’s like he practically lives here.

They eat on the couch in relative silence, but it’s still so completely comfortable. Calum’s got his legs strewn lazily over Michael’s, and it feels incredibly domestic, like they’re married, or something. Which should _probably_ be alarming since they’re still only seventeen, but whatever. Michael’s pretty sure Calum is endgame for him, anyway, so he refuses to let something like a casual sign of affection throw him off. The fact that he’ll probably end up marrying the boy beside him isn’t exactly something that keeps him up at night.

Michael offers to clean up, and Calum surprisingly lets him, despite that they both know Michael’s version of doing the dishes means rinsing the major mess off before tossing the dishes in the sink for somebody else to deal with later.

The whole mood shifts when Calum slides up behind him at the sink, wrapping strong yet slender arms around his waist as he hooks his chin over Michael’s shoulder. It makes him go all weak in the knees, because he gets that way every time Calum touches him so intimately, and he turns his head slightly so he can see Calum’s subtle smile.

"Come to bed?" Calum asks lowly, and Michael about chokes on air.

"Your parents will be home soon, won’t they?"

Calum shakes his head, pressing kisses to Michael’s shoulder blade and the base of his neck. Michael can’t help the way his eyes flutter shut, how he relaxes back into the touch and lets Calum have his fun. He _loves_ when Calum’s the one that puts the moves on _him_ , since it’s the other way around like 85% of the time.

"Not for another hour, at least." Calum assures him, drifting his hands lower so that his fingertips can play at the hem of Michael’s shirt and dance along the waistline of his jeans. Michael’s going to _die_. He’s a little unsure, though, because while an hour is a decent amount of time, it’s still not exactly a _lot_ of time.

"I don’t have anything with me." Michael confesses. Maybe it’s a bit wishful of him to make a statement like that, since it suggests something potentially more than their usual sex things. Calum might not even be alluding to full on sex here, which would make Michael look pretty fucking stupid right about now, if he isn’t.

Calum doesn’t tell Michael that he’s jumping to sexy conclusions, though. Instead, he presses up close, so that his hips are flush against the curve of Michael’s ass. Michael gasps when he feels the obvious press of Calum’s dick against him, already half hard, not entirely expecting his boyfriend to be so gone so quickly.

"I went out and bought all the stuff that we’ll need a couple of days ago." Calum says, and Michael just about falls to his knees to thank whatever guardian angel is watching over him tonight. "Now, come to bed?"

Michael nods, spinning in Calum’s loose grip so he can kiss him quickly. Calum squeaks in surprise, but he melts into it soon enough, always eager to mold himself into Michael’s touch, no matter how out of the blue it might be.

"Lead the way." Michael winks, and Calum giggles, grabbing his boyfriend’s pale hand and tugging him in the direction of the hallway. Michael’s been here so many times over the years he could probably make it to Calum’s room with his eyes closed, but there’s something really special and mind-bending about the walk down that same hall this time. It feels more monumental, with the way Calum keeps looking at him.

Calum shuts the door behind them once they’re in his room, and Michael can’t see if he locks it or not, but he’s too distracted by the way his boyfriend immediately throws himself at him to inquire about it. Calum’s body up against his is _way_ more important right now.

Calum kisses him hard, so rough it almost makes Michael wince. He can _feel_ all the desperation in it, but he understands. Michael loves it when they have the necessary amounts of time alone together to kiss and touch like this, too.

"How do you wanna—” Michael starts, but he’s cut off, turned speechless by the sight of Calum reaching over his head to pull his own shirt off. His mouth goes sort of dry taking in all of Calum’s brown skin, even though he’s seen it dozens of times. Michael will never completely get used to Calum baring it all for him.

"How do I want to what?" Calum breathes, reaching out for Michael’s hands and moving them to his waist. He shudders when Michael digs his fingers in hard enough to leave marks, closing his eyes and tilting his head back slightly.

Michael has a hard time taking his eyes off of Calum’s exposed torso, but he manages to do so long enough that he can glance over to Calum’s bed. "Go lay down."

Calum obeys, practically skipping over to his bed and flopping himself down on it. He looks ridiculous when he does it, clearly too excited to make it sexy, and Michael can’t help but chuckle at him.

"You should take off your pants." Michael suggests, sounding more desperate than he’d really like to admit.

Calum smirks. "What’s in it for me?"

Michael rolls his eyes fondly, stepping closer to the edge of the bed. The darker boy sits up, opening his legs slightly so that Michael can stand between them, his hands automatically flying to Michael’s hips as he looks up at his boyfriend innocently.

"I dunno. A blowjob, probably?" Michael shrugs, and Calum’s smile gets impossibly bigger, his eyes going comically wide. Michael can’t help but laugh lightly at his boyfriend’s eagerness. Always so weak for Michael’s mouth.

"Deal." Calum says immediately, pushing Michael back so that he can push at the waistband of his sweats. They come off easily, much more effortlessly than Calum’s usual skinny jeans attire does.

It’s the sight of Calum’s thighs—probably Michael’s most favorite part of Calum’s body, if he’s honest, he could and has spent _hours_ with his face between them—that breaks his relatively collected demeanor. The second that Calum tosses his pants to the floor, Michael’s pulling his own shirt off desperately, collapsing onto the bed on top of his boyfriend.

Calum moans softly, probably at the feeling of their hips brushing together ever so slightly. Michael can relate—even through the denim of his jeans, the friction still feels _wonderful_.

Without warning, Michael rolls them over, letting out a slow whistle at the sight of Calum’s toned body above him. Carefully, he adjusts the position of their legs, smirking slightly when he successfully works one of his thighs in between Calum’s legs. The younger boy whimpers at the pressure it provides against his cock, all hard and noticeably leaking in his light colored boxers. Michael’s speechless, so in awe as Calum closes his eyes and whimpers as he grinds down hard against Michael’s thigh in quick little movements.

They’ve done this before, plenty of times, but Michael will never get used to it. Calum used to be so nervous and unsure during things like this—they both were—but now he’s so shameless and unabashed. Michael loves watching him grow more comfortable in his own skin, become more vocal and assertive about what he wants.

They’re really going to do this. They’re going to go all the way tonight. _God_ , Michael is having a hard time wrapping his head all the way around that.

"Kiss me." Michael pleads, and Calum falls into his open arms easily, pliantly.

Calum _does_ kiss him, then, so soft and sweet in contrast to the filthy way they’re working their hips against each other. Michael claws at Calum’s back without really registering that he’s doing it, feeling so hot in his own skin, all feverish and desperate with how _good_ Calum’s making him feel.

Neither of them is ready for it when someone knocks on the door. They’re _especially_ not ready for it when said someone twists the handle and opens the bedroom door without even waiting for a response.

“Calum Thomas, you left the dishes—” Calum’s mother begins, and Michael swears he literally dies and ascends into the afterlife right at that very moment.

Whatever kind of humiliation he feels, though, must be _nothing_ compared to what Calum’s experiencing. His own fucking _mother_ just walked in on him and his boyfriend humping each other’s brains out.

"Mom!" Calum shouts, clearly in horror, as he clambers off of Michael and desperately reaches for the comforter so he can cover them up. Neither of them are even naked, so it’s not like there’s too much to hide, but Michael’s not exactly complaining. He doesn’t mind having the barrier between himself and Joy, no matter how thin.

Calum’s mom loves him a lot, and Michael adores her right back, but Michael doesn’t think this horribly awkward moment is going to really _enhance_ their relationship in any way.

Joy gasps, a hand immediately flying to her eyes as she shakes her head violently. "I’m sorry! I didn’t see anything!" She exclaims, though it sounds an awful lot like _‘I absolutely just saw everything!’_

"Get _out_!" Calum pleads, his voice breaking down the middle, and Michael would find it downright adorable if the circumstances weren’t so dire.

For the first time in all the years he’s known her, Michael hears Joy curse as she spins on her heels and scrambles to find the door handle while still covering her eyes. It only takes seconds, but it feels like _hours_ , before she finally exits the room and slams the door behind her, calling out several apologies as her voice retreats back down the hallway.

They sit in silence for a few moments, hearts pounding and dicks suddenly incredibly flaccid. Michael’s momentarily worried that he’ll _never_ get it up again, after this.

"Fuck." Calum says, burying his blushing face in his hands. Michael nods in agreement, patting his hand reassuringly on Calum’s waist.

Calum sighs, looking over at Michael with apologetic eyes. "She really wasn’t supposed to be home. This is so fucking embarrassing, I’m so sorry."

"Should I go?" Michael asks. "I should probably go."

The younger boy frowns. "You don’t have to leave. She won’t kick you out, or anything. She still loves you."

Michael snorts. "Yeah, but I don’t think I can look her in the eye for, like, at _least_ a year."

Calum looks disappointed, but he also nods in understanding. He pushes the comforter off of them, rolling over so that Michael can get up to grab his shirt. Calum slides back into his sweats, too, while he’s at it.

"Next time?" Michael suggests hopefully.

Calum blushes again, but this time Michael suspects it’s from the mention of the having-sex-for-the-first-time thing rather than from the humiliation caused by what’s just happened.

"Next time." Calum agrees before he stands, kissing Michael’s lips gently, just once. "It’ll be perfect."

Michael just prays that Calum’s right.

**-3-**

Michael grows determined, after that humiliating night at Calum’s house. He starts dedicating nearly all of his free time to planning the whole thing out, because he’ll be damned if he and Calum don’t have the best first time possible. It’s going to be fucking _romantic_ , if it’s the _last_ thing Michael does.

His opportunity to romance the hell out of his boyfriend comes about two weeks later, when his parents announce they’re going to some kind of work function for his father at a resort a few towns over. And if he knows his parents at all, which he does, that means they’ll be staying overnight.

Calum eagerly agrees to come over before Michael’s even finished properly inviting him. Michael suspects that’s because the younger boy can clearly read the underlying message in "My folks will be out of town Saturday night", but really, who _couldn’t_ decipher the hidden meaning in that? Michael laughs and kisses him gently afterwards, thinking about how completely 80’s high school romcom it is of them to be so obsessed with trying to get laid.

As soon as his parents leave that afternoon, Michael decides to make a last minute run to the shops. The florist he always sees but never buys from is open, thankfully, and he makes small talk with her as she puts together a bouquet of red roses for him. When he leaves, she tells him she hopes whoever they’re for adores them.

He feels a little (a lot) guilty sitting up in his bedroom half an hour later, plucking the petals of the roses off their stem, since the florist worked so hard to cut them beautifully for him. The red petals still look gorgeous scattered all over his bed and around his floor, though, so he convinces himself all her effort wasn’t wasted. Maybe he’ll go back and buy from her again later just to make himself feel better about it.

Calum comes over pretty shortly after that, and Michael barely has the foresight to ask him about his day before he whispers in Calum’s ear all low and blatantly suggestive, "I’ve got something for you upstairs."

His boyfriend smirks, looking up at him through suddenly hooded eyes, his pupils blown wide. "Oh yeah?"

Michael winks, grabbing Calum’s hand and gently tugging him towards the staircase. It takes everything in him not to bolt up the stairs two at a time, because he’s trying to keep his cool, damn it.

As soon as Michael opens his bedroom door, Calum’s expression changes from suggestive to complete shock. His brown eyes scan quickly over every rose petal, to the single lamp in the corner bathing the room in a soft halo of light, to the stereo that’s playing R&B on a volume just low enough to be background noise.

"Mikey." Calum breathes, giving Michael one of the biggest smiles Michael thinks he’s ever seen on the younger boy. "You did all this for _me_?"

Michael chuckles, closing the gap between them so that he can cup Calum’s cheeks between his palms. "You said it should be perfect. This is me making it perfect. Do you like it?"

Calum’s eyes are shining, and Michael realizes they’re _tears_. He panics momentarily, wondering if he’s offended Calum in some way, but then Calum’s swinging his arms around Michael’s waist and darting forward to kiss him sharply before Michael can even open his mouth to ask about it.

"You’re so fucking cheesy." Calum murmurs against his mouth, drawing a giggle out of the both of them. "I _love_ it."

Michael’s heart swells with pride, and he smiles before he can help it, turning his head to bury it in Calum’s hair. Calum just keeps clinging to him, hugging him so tight Michael briefly fears he’ll stop being able to breathe here in a minute.

"C’mere." Calum whispers, drawing back and carefully lacing their hands together. He starts walking backwards, towards Michael’s bed, and Michael follows him easily. It feels like an out of body experience.

Calum leans down onto the bed, inching backwards up towards the pillows. Propped up on his elbows, he keeps his legs spread, an invitation for Michael to crawl between them that the older boy eagerly takes him up on.

It’s always so effortless for Michael to fall in to Calum, always makes him feel so safe and comfortable and _warm_ to be pressed against his boy like this. Calum seems to revel in the feeling just as much, since he slides his arms around Michael’s shoulders and tries to pull him in closer and closer still.

With one hand sliding up under Calum’s shirt and the other holding his hip gently, Michael nuzzles his lips and nose against the hollow of the younger boy’s throat. Calum gasps adorably, his stomach tensing against the pads of Michael’s fingers, and Michael can’t help but smirk against Calum’s dark skin.

Unexpectedly, Calum’s whole body seizes up, and Michael halts his movements at the feeling. He’s about to pull all the way back, to ask if Calum’s still alright, when the boy’s nose scrunches up, his eyes squeezing shut as he brings a hand up to cover his nose and mouth just before he fucking _sneezes_.

Michael’s momentarily stunned, but the action catches him so off guard that his first reaction is to laugh, because _fuck_ if that isn’t one of the cutest things Michael’s ever witnessed in all his seventeen years.

Calum sniffles, shaking his head slightly before he giggles, too. They don’t say anything, just look at each other briefly before Calum leans back again, arching his neck up, and Michael doesn’t need to be asked twice. He snuggles in close again, starts to nip at the skin of Calum’s neck before he leaves hot, open mouthed kisses all along the expanse of it. He can feel Calum shuddering beneath him, his hips ticking up into Michael’s as a clear indicator of just how much he’s enjoying this.

Halfway through a long, drawn out sigh, Calum inhales sharply, only to scare the shit out of Michael when he sneezes _again_.

This time, Michael does pull back all the way, looking down at his boyfriend as he unravels his hands from around Michael’s shoulders, instead using both of them to cover his mouth as he sneezes in rapid fire. His eyes are clenched shut the whole time, and when he finally opens them back up after an impressive six sneezes in a row, they’re all red and irritated.

"Cal, are you alright?" Michael asks, laughing once, but it’s more in disbelief than anything.

Calum shrugs, opens his mouth to reply, but he just tenses up and covers his mouth before he sneezes several more times in a row. There’s wetness collecting at the corners of his eyes.

"I don’t—" Calum starts, pausing for a second to rub at his left eye furiously. It must be itching. He keeps at it for a few moments, before he suddenly stops, looking up at Michael with puffy eyes blown wide. "Wait, are these _real_ roses?"

Michael frowns. "Um. Yeah?"

Calum groans, pushing at Michael’s shoulders until he sits back on his heels, giving Calum enough room to clamber up and out of the bed. Michael feels an ache in his chest, something like rejection, and he isn’t entirely sure what he’s done wrong. He thought Calum _liked_ the roses.

He’s about to ask, but then Calum sneezes again, and it hits him. And he’s never felt more _stupid_.

"Oh, fuck." Michael sighs, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. "Your allergies."

Calum huffs. "Yeah. My allergies." His voice sounds so nasally and congested, and Michael feels bad about almost laughing at it. "I’m gonna die."

Michael rolls his eyes. Even _he_ knows Calum’s not allergic enough to anything in the world for it to actually _kill_ him. Especially not some contact with rose petals.

"You’re not going to _die_." Michael points out, and Calum only responds by sneezing again. "Get out, go downstairs. Take a pill or something. I’ll clean this up, alright?"

Calum nods, looking like he wants to give Michael some sort of “thank you” or “I’m sorry”, but all he does is sneeze harshly before he makes a beeline for the bedroom door.

He shuts it behind him, and Michael flops down onto his back on the bed once he’s alone, miserably staring up at the ceiling and sort of wishing he was dead. Cockblocked by a fucking flower. Who knew seasonal allergies could prevent him from getting some action? Michael sure didn’t.

He spends the rest of the night cleaning up the rose petals, stealing his mother’s air purifier from his parents’ bedroom to hopefully filter out all of the shit that’s making his boyfriend sneeze. When he’s sure it’s all been cleaned up, Calum still refuses to go back into the bedroom for at least another several hours, so Michael helps him out while he suffers through the beginning stages of what ends up becoming an unfortunate week-long allergy induced head cold.

It’s the worst, really. Michael is the worst.

**-4-**

Michael really only allows himself to mope for a couple of days following Calum’s sniffles spell before he decides to get his head back in the game. He can’t let a little bump of bad luck ruin everything.

His second attempt at romancing Calum all nice and proper goes down after one of Calum’s away games. The younger boy had texted him about their victory while on the bus back to their home campus and mentioned how Michael should stop by for a celebratory movie night, which is when Michael gets the idea.

When he gets to Calum’s house, he’s thankful that Mali is the one to greet him at the door. Normally he’d just walk in, shout hello since Calum’s family is practically his own, but Michael’s still struggling to be in the same room as Joy for too many moments. He has issues looking Calum’s father in the eye these days, too, since he just _knows_ Joy told him all about what she walked in on. Mali is the only person in this family besides Calum that Michael doesn’t currently feel like dying around.

“I need the basement.” Michael tells her, and she just crosses her arms, jutting a hip out.

“Oh, wow, it’s so nice to see you, Mali! It sure has been a long time, Mali. How’ve you been, Mali?” She teases, lowering her voice a few octaves to imitate Michael pretty poorly.

Michael rolls his eyes, leaning in to give her a polite kiss on the cheek. "It’s only been, like, a week. But sure, it’s nice to see you, Mali." He gives her a wink, for which she shoves him playfully with a big smile on her face.

“Why do you need the basement?” She asks, shutting the front door behind them as Michael walks in and starts for the staircase that leads downstairs.

“Why do you _think_ I need the basement?”

Mali wrinkles her nose in disgust. “Gross. Also, Calum’s not even home yet?”

Michael nods, adjusting the backpack on his shoulder. Inside, his supplies shuffle, clanking together, and Mali quirks an eyebrow.

“Candles?” She inquires, and Michael shifts uncomfortably.

“It’s romantic. Whatever. Shut up.” He defends, looking down at his shoes in brief awkwardness before he remembers that Mali probably couldn’t care less about Michael and her brother having sex. If anything, she’s the least likely person to bring it up to her and Calum’s parents, considering all the horror stories he and Calum have on her and her ex boyfriend that Joy would just about faint at hearing.

Mali shrugs. “I wasn’t being a dick. Want me to get mom and dad out of here for a couple hours?”

Michael’s eyes go all wide, and he hopes Mali can see the thankfulness within them. He could literally kiss her right now.

He doesn’t even have to say anything before she’s chuckling, waving him off downstairs with promises of getting Joy and David to go out for dinner with her for awhile. She should win a Greatest Big Sister Award, or something, for helping her younger brother and his boyfriend to get in each other’s pants. Michael thought siblings that looked out for one another to that extent were myths, but whatever. He’s been wrong before.

True to her word, Mali gets her and Calum’s parents out of the house in record timing, texting him once they’ve left with an estimated time of return in about two hours or more. Plenty of time.

With the coast clear, Michael starts setting up, placing about a dozen candles around the room, all with relatively neutral scents so that Calum’s immune system doesn’t flare up again. Michael doesn’t think he could handle that twice in a row. He’s just finished lighting them all and turning off the light switch so that the room is bathed in natural glow when he hears the front door open upstairs.

“Mike?” Calum calls, clearly having seen and recognized Michael’s car parked down the street, inconspicuous enough so that Joy and David wouldn’t see it and realize that Michael’s over. Normally they wouldn’t care if he stopped by, but Michael can’t be too cautious after The Incident.

“Basement!” Michael hollers back, quickly ruffling his hair in the reflection of the TV screen. He’s debating whether or not he should take off his clothes to complete the cheesiness factor, but he doesn’t really think he has enough time for it to look suave. He opts instead for just sliding out of his jacket, tossing it onto the floor in the corner.

He hears Calum’s footsteps on the wooden stairs, and he can’t help but smile when he spots the look of wonder on Calum’s face the exact moment that Calum sees what Michael’s done.

“Babe, again?” Calum whispers, standing at the bottom of the stairs and letting his hand linger on the railing like he’s scared he’ll collapse if he lets go. “You went all out for me _again_?”

Michael blushes. “Of course. I promised you that it would be perfect, didn’t I?”

Calum beams, rushing the room and all but pouncing on Michael. Michael barely has the reflexes to catch him, and he staggers a bit as Calum jumps up and swings his legs around Michael’s waist. There’s no way Michael’s strong enough to keep this embrace up for long, but a minute or so probably won’t kill him. Especially since Calum is holding him tight and burying his face in Michael’s neck.

“You’re too good to me.” Calum breathes. “I don’t deserve you.”

Michael shakes his head. “Shut up, you’re so much better than I am. _I_ don’t deserve _you_.”

Calum releases his python grip on Michael’s waist, allowing his legs to drop back down to solid ground one by one. He stays pressed close, though, which Michael doesn’t protest to at all.

Michael smiles softly, taking a second to look down into Calum’s beautiful brown eyes. They’re glistening with happiness, but Michael can also see a little bit of exhaustion in them from playing a game just an hour or so ago. He hopes Calum’s not too tired for this.

“Do you think tonight, we could—” Michael starts, one hand caressing Calum’s cheek as he strokes his thumb along the skin.

Before he can finish asking, Calum moans out _god, yes_ , lurching forward to kiss Michael’s mouth almost painfully. It’s such a contrast to the way Michael’s lightly holding him, to the way Calum’s softly brushing his fingers along Michael’s waist, but that’s Michael’s favorite part about kissing Calum. How it can be so many different sensations all at the same time.

Michael breathes in deep, body relaxing greatly with the familiar smell of his boy surrounding him. Of Calum’s lingering cologne, of the not-exactly-sexy-but-so-very- _Calum_ scent of sweat clinging to the younger boy’s skin, of the...of the _smoke_?

Michael’s eyes go wide, and he pulls back, spinning around just in time to watch as the curtains hanging from the semi-basement’s window catch fire thanks to a somewhat carelessly placed candle. His heart rate picks up to a mile a minute, and Calum actually squeals from behind him when he clearly takes in the same exact scene Michael is seeing.

"Is there an extinguisher down here?!" Michael shouts, scrambling over to the corner to retrieve the jacket he’d discarded earlier, wondering if maybe he’d be able to smother the flames with it.

Calum nods, bolting halfway up the stairs to grab the extinguisher they must have placed up there somewhere. Michael looks around for a water bottle, or _anything_ with water, but he’s horrifically coming up empty handed.

Before Michael can decide between rushing upstairs to the bathroom to fill up a bucket of water and just trying to tackle the flames with his jacket, Calum’s back by his side, yanking the pin out of the small extinguisher and squeezing the lever. Michael just watches on, deflated, as Calum douses the entire window and surrounding area in the foamy substance. It seems excessive, how long it takes for the flames to finally go out.

As they stand there in silence, breathing heavily, Michael decides he can’t believe how ridiculous his life is. He can’t believe this is his reality. He really _isn’t_  going to get laid, like, ever.

"The odds are against me." Michael mopes. "I’m never gonna get my dick in you." After a moment, he adds, "It's destiny."

Calum pauses, turning to face Michael before he laughs semi-hysterically. Michael can relate. His hands are still shaking, terrified.

Calum drops the extinguisher, marching the few feet over to Michael before he grips Michael’s face between his hands roughly, kissing him like it’s some kind of punishment.

"Soon." Calum tells him, gazing into his eyes so deeply that Michael decides to believe it. "I swear it."

**-5-**

Nothing can possibly go wrong this time; Michael is so sure of it. He’s gone to extra lengths to make sure of that, picking Calum up for date night and driving them several miles down the highway after grabbing burgers and milkshakes from the drive thru for dinner. At first, he plans to keep on driving and driving, just to have the precious down time together, but then Calum’s mentioning taking an upcoming exit that has a really great place off the beaten path that’s perfect for parking and making out, and Michael can’t exactly say _no_ to the suggestion.

That’s where they are now, parked in an isolated lot with nobody around for at least a mile. It’s slightly creepy, considering how alone they are out here, but they’re also not too far from the highway. Michael can still see headlights flying by in the distance.

Michael’s laying down on the bench of his backseat, thighs bracketed by Calum’s knobby knees as the younger boy leans down over him. They’re already down to their underwear, the car windows fogging up from all the heat radiating between them.

Calum’s kissing mercilessly at his jaw, one hand dancing along his ribs so lightly that it almost tickles, the other inching dangerously close to the waistband of Michael’s underwear. His hips tick up almost unconsciously, begging for the contact, and Calum exhales a huff of warm air against the damp skin he’s been licking at. It sends a chill down Michael’s spine, the hands that have slid round to grope at Calum’s perfect ass squeezing as a reflex.

"Wha’dya wanna do?" Calum murmurs against the shell of his ear, biting lightly at the lobe, and Michael nearly whimpers.

"There’s stuff in the glove compartment." Michael pants, sliding one of his hands beneath Calum’s underwear to squeeze the boy’s ass more surely. It’s Calum’s turn to whimper, pressing his lips to Michael’s neck firmly in an attempt to stifle the sound. "So we can, um. If you want to, that is."

Calum chuckles. "Obviously." He sucks at Michael’s pulse point once, since he’s in the area, and when Michael sighs blissfully at the feeling of it, Calum uses the distraction to finally rub the heel of his hand down over the outline of Michael’s dick in his boxers. "Wanna suck you first, though, I think."

Michael doesn’t have the heart to tell Calum there probably isn’t enough room to manage that without reconfiguring their positions, and that he doesn’t really have the energy to move his body, since it feels like all his bones have gone liquid.

Instead, he just whines, "Fuck, yeah. Want that, too." When Calum lifts his head back up away from Michael’s neck, Michael assumes it’s for a kiss, so he jolts his head forward eagerly.

It’s a gross miscalculation though, apparently, because the exact moment that Michael rushes forward is the same moment that Calum ducks his head, clearly planning on making his way down to Michael’s crotch. And Michael ends up with a face full of Calum—only, not in the good kind of way. Not at all.

It’s in the kind of way where Calum’s forehead collides with the bridge of Michael’s nose, and both of them instantly yelp in pain, repelling from each other faster than similarly charged magnets.

Michael’s entire head is ringing, his nose throbbing with a pain unlike anything he’s ever felt before. He’s never been hit with anything in this spot before, and _damn_ is Calum’s forehead fucking rock solid.

"Fuck." Calum groans, holding his forehead in his hand. His eyes are closed for a few seconds, squeezed tight like he’s trying to channel the pain out that way. " _Ow_."

Michael nods in agreement. "You have a hard head."

Calum chuckles, opening his eyes back up and turning to face Michael. His eyes go all big the second they land on him, though, and Michael represses a sigh. He can only imagine what Calum’s about to point out.

"Shit, you’re bleeding." Calum blurts, lunging over the console to grab some of the unused napkins out of their carryout bags. He hands them to Michael, coaxing his fingers through Michael’s hair and pulling softly, encouraging him to tilt his head back. "I’ll pinch, you hold." He instructs, using his thumb and index finger to pinch off the bridge of Michael’s nose.

Michael _does_ sigh this time, begrudgingly bringing the napkins up to his bleeding nose. He hates the feeling of lightheadedness that nosebleeds give him, but he hates having one right in front of Calum even more.

His voice is nasally when he says, "I’m so done with this."

Calum frowns, adjusting his grip as he wiggles in closer. His fingers stay put in Michael’s hair, brushing through the locks soothingly. "What do you mean, Mikey?"

Michael shrugs. He feels so fucking _ridiculous_ , sitting in the backseat of his car almost naked with his boyfriend helping him clean up a bloody nose. He can’t even begin to comprehend what kind of horrible karma he must have accumulated to be receiving this kind of shitty luck.

"I know it’s just sex, but like." Michael sighs again, squeezing his eyes shut when he feels hot, angry tears threatening to spill. Once he’s willed them away, he turns his head to look Calum straight on, but Calum murmurs lowly that he needs to keep his head tilted back, so he leans it against the headrest once more. "God, Cal, I want to have that with you so badly. I want to have something that _special_ together."

Calum curls in against him, kisses his cheek softly. "It _will_ be special." He insists.

Michael scoffs. "Not if this kind of shit keeps happening! Everything that can possibly go wrong is going wrong!" He closes his eyes again, silently cursing himself when one pesky tear escapes, rolling down his cheek shamefully. "I’m just so sick of embarrassing myself like this, you know?"

"Hey, stop." The younger boy says as he lets go of Michael’s nose, using his free fingers to brush the tear and the rest of its track away. When he’s done, he flutters his fingertips across Michael’s eyelids, coaxing them back open so he can look down into them reassuringly. "It’s okay, yeah? Sex itself is supposed to be awkward and embarrassing, right? It’s not supposed to be a walk in the park. Don’t be upset with yourself just because we’re a couple of dorks who’re _learning_."

Michael supposes Calum’s got him there. It’s just so easy for him to lose his head when he gets frustrated like this.

"Give me a kiss?" Michael asks, and Calum smiles wide, leaning in to press his lips to the corner of Michael’s mouth softly before he resumes pinching Michael’s nose.

**+1**

They have a week off from school in the spring, which Michael mostly intends to spend catching up on hours of Netflix and hanging around Calum’s place. His parents aren’t taking any fun vacations this year or anything, so he’s stuck at home. Which really isn’t _all_ bad, since he’d much rather spend the time with Cal anyway.

The first day into the break, Calum texts him, telling Michael to pack an overnight bag and to be ready for Calum to swing by and pick him up in an hour. Michael doesn’t even question it, because they’ve swept each other up into adventures mostly unannounced several times before. It’s sort of their thing.

When the horn honks outside, Michael barrels downstairs, a backpack slung over his shoulder as he shouts to his parents that he’ll be back tomorrow. He doesn’t even know if that’s true, doesn’t know when they’ll be back or how far they’re even going, but Michael’s mom hollers back a _be safe!_ just before Michael slams the front door shut and bolts across the lawn to where Calum’s parked out front.

Calum gives him a kiss when he gets into the passenger seat, pulling away from the curb and speeding out of the neighborhood before Michael’s even gotten his seatbelt on.

"Where’re we going?" Michael asks, propping his feet up on the dash and fucking with the radio. Calum doesn’t seem to mind the constant changes right in the middle of songs, just keeps one hand casually draped on the wheel as the other rests on Michael’s thigh. (Where it belongs, Michael might add.)

"It’s a surprise." Calum says, giving Michael a wink before Michael rolls his eyes. Because he’s horrible at keeping secrets, though, Calum admits not even five seconds later, "I snagged us a hotel room."

Michael’s eyes widen in shock, but he’s more excited than anything when he goes, " _What_? Where?"

Calum chuckles, letting his fingers dance along the inside of Michael’s thigh, over the inseam of his jeans. "By the pier. Thought we could spend today and some of tomorrow down there. Since, you know, spring break and stuff." There’s a hint of a smirk tugging at Calum’s mouth, and Michael can clearly hear the suggestiveness behind his words. Calum _definitely_ got them the room more for the _and stuff_ than anything else.

Michael reaches down for Calum’s hand, stroking the pad of his thumb over the top of it. “I love you.” He says, just because he can, and because he’s yet to find a time where saying the three words is inappropriate. Calum always blushes so furiously when Michael tells him that, like it’s the first time Calum’s hearing it all over again.

“Yeah, yeah.” Calum says with a roll of his eyes, but there’s a shy smile on his face nonetheless. “Love you, too.”

Michael’s heart flutters in his chest, and he relaxes into the seat, continuing his soft strokes over Calum’s hand. He dozes off easily for the rest of the drive, Calum’s hand warm on his thigh and the low volume of the music coming through the speakers lulling him peacefully.

*

The hotel room really isn’t anything fancy, just containing a queen sized bed and a television that hangs from the wall. It’s clean, though, and after they’ve checked in, Michael feels pretty comfortable with tossing his bag onto the floor and diving headfirst into the sheets. Calum doesn’t join him in that, just laughs at him and turns on the TV while he heads into the adjoining bathroom to wash his face.

They don’t stay in the hotel room much longer after that, Calum dragging Michael from the bed with promises of adventures and delicious food down at the beach. To which, obviously, Michael doesn’t say no.

The beach is littered with spring breakers, so they don’t stick around there too much. The pier, however, has a more peaceful and quiet charm to it, and they spend hours upon hours bouncing from shop to shop, messing around in a couple of arcades and playing most of the boardwalk games.

When the sun starts inching down on the horizon, they sit on one of the benches in silence and just _watch_ , Michael’s arm around his boy and Calum’s head against his chest.

Michael thinks he would be content with never moving from this spot for the rest of his life.

*

It’s late when they find their way back to the hotel. The sun has long since set, darkness overtaking, and it’s nearly pitch black save for the light of the moon filtering in through the curtains when Calum opens their door.

Michael’s exhausted, but he’s exhausted in that way where his mind is still going a mile a minute. He probably couldn’t sleep now even if he tried.

So really, it’s a good thing that when Calum shuts the door, he reaches out for the older boy’s wrist and all but yanks Michael into him. He backs himself up against the wall, encouraging Michael to bracket him in, and Michael takes him up on that immediately, pressing in close until Calum can barely even wiggle freely.

“Hi.” Calum giggles, brushing their noses together. Michael can’t help but laugh with him, nuzzling him back more overtly. He shudders when he feels Calum’s fingers—freezing, somehow, Calum’s never usually this cold, is he?—sneak up under the hem of his shirt. “D’you wanna…?”

Michael had known the primary reason for getting this hotel room and sneaking out of town for a day or two was sex—finally making _sure_ they’d be uninterrupted and far enough away from familiar faces that hopefully nothing could go wrong, that luck would finally be on their side. And okay, maybe saying that he’d been having so much fun all day down at the pier that he’d completely forgotten about the potential sex to be had back at the hotel would be a complete and total lie, but still. It’s exciting to have Calum bring it up like this. It means it’s finally going to _happen_.

“Yeah.” Michael whispers, placing a tender peck to the tip of Calum’s nose. “Yeah, I wanna.”

Calum smiles in what looks like relief, as if he somehow thought Michael wouldn’t be interested anymore. As if Michael would stop wanting Calum altogether, after the clusterfuck of sexual endeavors they’ve had to endure over the past couple of weeks.

It makes Michael’s stomach flip uncomfortably to imagine Calum thinking something like that—to imagine Calum thinking Michael wouldn’t want him anymore. The concept is fucking outrageous to Michael. He doesn’t think he’ll ever want somebody in the same way he wants Calum—has _always_ wanted Calum, since he was old enough to know what it _was_ that he wanted. Calum is _it_ for him.

Calum’s fingers are warming up underneath Michael’s shirt, and Michael suspects that has a lot to do with the fact that his own skin is burning up, hot with want and desire. His boyfriend looks like he might be approaching a similar state, his pupils blowing wider and his mouth parted slightly.

Michael can’t wait any longer, not with the way Calum’s staring at him like he’s making a mental checklist of all the things he’s going to do to him, so he grabs the back of Calum’s neck a bit viciously, pulling him in for a kiss that makes his lips ache like they’re already bruised. Calum just gasps, his nails digging into the soft flesh of Michael’s waist as he eagerly parts his lips further, always so desperate for more.

And Michael gives it to him, sliding his tongue against Calum’s and exploring his mouth as if he’s never tasted it before. _God_ , literally _everything_ with Calum feels like it’s the first time all over again. It’s incredible.

“Are we really doing this?” Michael asks once he’s broken the kiss, pulled back just far enough to breathe, but his lips still brush Calum’s when he speaks.

His boyfriend huffs out a laugh, similarly breathless, before he nods. “Hell yeah. We’re doing this.”

Michael grins, giggling before he kisses Calum again, only slightly softer. “Hop on the bed for me, baby.”

Calum’s body goes all pliant at the instruction, his eyes growing darker like they sometimes do whenever Michael talks to him like this. Michael can’t help but wonder if that’s, like, a _thing_ for the younger boy. Something that they’ll possibly have to end up exploring later on. Probably it is. Michael can just _tell_ that Calum’s got some pretty freaky fantasies buried deep down—he can’t wait to bring them all out to play someday.

Calum moves slowly, something he very rarely has the patience to do. Normally he’s jumping onto the bed and all but shoving Michael down with him, but this time, he takes his time. He gives Michael a glance over his shoulder, all pouty and desperate, and Michael’s cock twitches in his pants when the younger boy licks his lips like he probably doesn’t even realize he’s doing it.

Michael fights the urge to palm himself as he leans against the wall, watching Calum crawl up onto the bed. His hips are sinful when he twists them to roll over onto his back, and Michael only briefly has time to mourn the loss of the perfect visual he had on Calum’s ass before Calum’s spreading his legs and silently beckoning Michael closer.

“Lights on or off?” Michael remembers to ask. He would love the lights on, would love to really _see_ Calum when they do this, but he gets that Calum might not be as okay with it. What they’re about to do can definitely feel a lot more intense than a couple of rushed handjobs in the afternoons after class.

Michael’s heart swells with pride at the complete confidence in Calum’s voice when the boy says, “On. I want ‘em on.”

The older boy beams, reaching out to flick the lights on and brightening the room significantly, before he makes his way over to the edge of the bed. Calum’s still laying back, his legs spread out in a lazy V shape and bent slightly at the knees. Michael finds it a little hard to respire properly with a view like this, and he swears his heart skips several beats when Calum’s hips tick up like he can’t even help it.

“Can I?” Michael whispers, leaning in to tap lightly at the button on Calum’s jeans.

Calum nods eagerly, nudging Michael back gently so that he can kick his shoes off first. It reminds Michael that his own shoes are still on, too, and he awkwardly shifts his feet as he toes himself out of them, kicking them across the room afterwards.

Barefoot, Calum lifts his hips up, unfastening the button on his pants and sighing blissfully when he undoes the zipper as well. Michael can relate—he’s so hard he feels like he’s gonna die. The relief of loosening his pants is something he’d love right about now.

Before Calum can rest his hips back down, Michael hooks his fingers through the belt loops and tugs downwards. Surprisingly, the jeans come off with minimal struggle, and Michael decides right at that moment that their sexual luck must finally be changing. They just might pull this off without a hitch.

With his jeans discarded somewhere on the floor, Calum spreads his legs again, reaching down with one hand to rub himself over his boxers like he can’t even help it. It reminds Michael of the first time they ever jerked off together, how surprised he’d been to see the way that Calum loved to tease and tease and _tease_ himself, when Michael had been so used to just going to town on himself, because that always seemed to work him up just fine.

“Mike.” Calum pants, reaching out with his free hand to squeeze at Michael’s bicep. “Don’t just stand there, please, can—can you—”

Michael’s not entirely sure that Calum’s even forming real questions, but he does snap out of his little daze at the sound of the boy’s voice, all pleading and soft. Calum’s thighs are shaking already, just from palming himself, and Michael can’t wait to see how badly they tremble once Michael’s inside him. Michael’s going to be _inside him_ , fuck.

Even though he doesn’t really know what Calum’s trying to ask, Michael nods, languidly trailing his fingertips over Calum’s calf only to wrap them loosely around his ankle. It’s a gentle touch, barely even there, but Calum’s whole body shivers like Michael’s hands are everywhere all at once. Calum makes a face that looks like he’s in pain, and he sighs exaggeratedly when he tears his hand away from his briefs, reaching up to grab on roughly to one of the pillows at the headrest.

“Don’t wanna touch yourself?” Michael jokes, and Calum snorts, lifting a foot to push at Michael’s shoulder with it.

“Wanna touch you instead.” Calum says simply. He’s so casual, but the way he’s raking his eyes over Michael’s body is truly anything but. “Want you to get naked, too.”

Michael resists pointing out that Calum himself isn’t even naked, instead ducking down to kiss aggressively at the inside of one of Calum’s thighs. It makes the younger boy yelp, his hips lurching of their own accord at Michael’s unexpected assault. Michael just hums against him, sucking at the skin as if he can literally feel the blood vessels bursting beneath it, and Calum’s only just started working his fingers through Michael’s hair before the older boy is pulling away, up and off the bed so that he can start fumbling with the belt of his jeans.

Calum simply lays back and watches as Michael gets his pants off, one of his hands still gripping the pillow above him while the other pushes his shirt up to his chest, enabling him to start running his fingertips over the light ripples of muscle on his own stomach. Michael’s spent _ages_ kissing Calum’s stomach before; he almost wants to do it now, even with the added distracters of everything else he wants to do right now.

When he’s tossed his jeans over by Calum’s discarded ones, Michael plants his knees on the bed, crawling in between Calum’s legs slowly. He lowers himself over the younger boy, forearms braced by Calum’s head, and just takes a moment for himself to stare down at the boy below him.

“I love you.” Calum says before Michael can, and the older boy chuckles, ducking down to kiss him, slow and sure. Calum sighs against him, hitching one of his legs up around Michael’s waist and using the leverage he gains from it to pull Michael in even further, impossibly closer. It feels sweet, like some weird variation of a hug.

Since Calum’s already pushed his shirt up so far, it takes minimal effort on Michael’s end to maneuver it off of him the rest of the way. They have to break apart to manage it, which sucks, but Calum’s back on him so quickly afterwards it’s almost like they never even stopped touching.

“I’m just gonna—” Michael cuts himself off, nosing at Calum’s jaw until the boy takes the hint and tilts his head back. He doesn’t start marking him up the way Calum’s probably expecting him to, though, just sort of firmly presses his lips to the boy’s pulse in attempt to ground himself as he shifts all his weight to his left arm, using his right to shove his hand down into Calum’s briefs.

Calum gasps stupidly loud, his back arching and one of his legs kicking out like he’s being tortured, or something. It’s not even, like, a surprised sort of sound—Calum’s always just so _loud_ when they do this in general, always so responsive and willing. Michael can’t believe he got so lucky.

He doesn’t have the patience to tease right now, too much anticipation and eagerness pumping through his veins for that. He just works his fist over Calum’s cock hard and fast instead, circling his thumb firmly over the head on every upstroke until the younger boy is whimpering beautifully underneath him and sliding his hands up the back of Michael’s shirt, clinging to the boy’s shoulders like he’ll fucking fly away if he doesn’t anchor himself down somehow.

“Mikey,” Calum whines, so high and soft that Michael almost doesn’t even hear him. He doesn’t answer right away, but he doesn’t think Calum was looking for a reply anyway, since he just keeps repeating Michael’s name over and over like it’s the only thing he knows as his hips fuck up, up, up into the tight grip Michael’s made of his hand. “Feels so good.”

“Yeah?” Michael puffs, his breath feeling hot and humid when it bounces off Calum’s neck and ricochets back against his own face. It feels like a hundred degrees in this damn hotel room, his whole body is on fire. “You like this?”

Calum at least has the coherency left to chuckle a bit, though it splits down the middle, transforming into a groan when Michael reaches two fingers down to grind his knuckles against the skin behind his balls—only long enough for Calum to seize his whole body up, though, and then Michael’s wrapping his fingers back around his cock again, jacking him with the same fervor as before.

“Don’t pretend you don’t know how I like it.” Calum jokes, panting hard, and Michael smiles against his throat. Calum’s right—Michael knows _exactly_ how Calum likes it when it comes to this. He could jerk Calum to orgasm in his sleep, probably. Which, speaking off— “Mike, I’m gonna c-come.”

It takes everything Michael has in him to pull his hand away, completely out of Calum’s boxers. He loves making Calum come, every _single_ thing about it, but that isn’t the way he wants it to happen this time. Calum doesn’t even make his usual noise of complaint, so Michael guesses he must be on the same train of thought.

“You brought stuff, right? Please tell me you brought stuff.” Michael pleads. He doesn’t think he could handle it if they got this far only to be shoved face first back down to square one.

Calum nods quickly. “‘Course. Side pocket of my duffel.”

Michael gives him a short kiss before he’s shoving off the bed, moving towards the overnight bag faster than he’s probably ever moved for anything in his life. Calum laughs at him fondly, and Michael just flips him off over his shoulder as he crouches down to pull what they’ll need out of the pocket Calum told him about.

When he turns back around, Calum’s in the middle of sliding his underwear off, flinging them to the floor and offering Michael a sultry wink after he realizes that he’s been caught. Michael just snorts at his boyfriend’s cheekiness, tossing the small bottle and handful of condoms onto the mattress beside him before he yanks his own shirt over his head and throws it behind him as if it’s offended him in some way.

Michael’s about to clamber back onto the bed, but Calum puts a hand to his chest, staring up at him with something that looks like insecurity dancing across his face. His bottom lip is tucked under his teeth, and he’s chewing at it anxiously.

“You okay?” Michael murmurs, placing his palm over Calum’s hand where it’s still resting over his heart, entwining their fingers and squeezing gently. “Talk to me.”

“I’m fine.” Calum says quickly, giving Michael his best affirming nod. “I just. Can you, um. Naked, too? Please?”

They’re not full sentences, but Michael still gets it. It had seemed like playful kidding earlier, when Calum told him to take his clothes off, too, but at the end of the day, Michael understands how intimidating it can feel to be baring all without reciprocation. He’d hate for his boy to be anything but comfortable. He remembers how sickeningly nervous he had been the first time Calum took all his clothes off of him.

Michael nods, kissing Calum’s forehead swiftly before he stands back up and slides his underwear off as well.

As soon as Michael’s completely naked, Calum sits up, gripping Michael’s hips with a compelling amount of strength. He whispers _thank you_ to him, gratefully looking up at the older boy through hooded eyes as he starts pressing his lips all over Michael’s pale chest, slowly lowering them until he’s littering kisses across Michael’s soft stomach.

Michael’s breathing hitches when Calum bites down gently on his hipbone, and his brain fires a million variations of _fuck, yes_ when Calum shifts his legs up underneath him, repositioning himself until he’s comfortable on his knees, and Michael realizes what he’s about to do.

“Can I?” Calum murmurs, all hot and wet and clearly on purpose, since he knows how close his mouth is to the head of Michael’s dick. How Michael can feel every little sensation. Calum knows how it’ll send shivers up his spine.

“Yeah, please.” Michael blurts, eyes wide and body wound so tight it feels like he could literally explode any second now. He knows he won’t be able to take too much of this, in the same way that Calum couldn’t take more than a minute or two of his hand, but that’s alright. There’s no way in hell he’d turn down Calum’s mouth right now—or ever, probably—no matter the circumstance.

Calum hums like he’s _thankful_ for the permission, and Michael has to close his eyes when Calum licks over the slit, he _has_ to, or else he swears he’ll come, like, instantly. He hasn’t been touched all night, not really, and the hyper focused attention is almost too much for him after so much nothingness.

“Love when you suck me off.” Michael babbles nonsensically, but only because it’s _true_. He swears a little piece of him dies in the best possible way every time Calum gets his mouth around him like this. Calum’s always been good at this—Michael can’t remember receiving a blowjob from his boyfriend that’s been anything other than life changing. “You’re so _good_.”

Calum’s hips wiggle a bit, and Michael isn’t sure if he purposely does it or not, or what it would even mean if it _was_ intentional. He doesn’t have the energy to focus on it, though, not when Calum brings a hand up to wrap around what he can’t immediately fit in his mouth and twists his fist, skillfully working his mouth and fingers together. Michael nearly whimpers, cutting the sound off before it comes out in its full capacity. Calum notices anyway, and he makes damn sure that he looks up at Michael afterwards and fucking _winks_.

The hand that Calum still has on Michael’s hip is squeezing and releasing repeatedly, fingers flexing like he isn’t quite sure what he wants to do with them. It’s mostly a subconscious movement when Michael brings one of his own hands to wrap around it, creating some awkward makeshift hold that settles Calum’s fidgeting down, calming him. Michael’s other hand comes to rest on Calum’s cheek, and his eyes roll to the back of his head when he can _feel_ Calum’s jaw stretching to accommodate his cock.

“Stop, _stop_.” Michael gasps desperately, squeezing over Calum’s hand and putting all his effort into not fucking his hips forward into Calum’s mouth. They haven’t tried anything of that stature yet, but something tells him Calum would be super into it.

He half expects Calum to ignore him and keep going until Michael explodes down his throat, but he doesn’t, just pulls back and flicks his thumb over the slit once more before sitting back on his heels like he’s waiting further instruction. “Was that good?”

Michael laughs once, shaking his head in disbelief. He bends down, cupping Calum’s face between as he kisses the absolute life out of him. “Yeah, babe. Real good.”

Calum beams, cheeks and chest flushing red under the praise. Michael loves how easy it is to work Calum up—all he has to do is talk sweet to him, tell him the _truth_ , and Calum’s all gone for it like giving Michael what he wants is his biggest turn on. Which.

“You gonna fuck me now?” Calum whispers, and it sounds awfully bold, but Calum’s confidence always skyrockets after Michael compliments him. Michael can’t really complain.

“If that’s what you want.” Michael says.

Calum smirks, kissing Michael’s jaw once before he lays back, legs spreading out languidly again. He looks like a mess—a beautiful, beautiful mess—and Michael can’t wait to make it worse. Michael can only imagine what kind of state _he_ looks to be in. He feels like he’s out of his body, or something. This whole moment feels surreal.

“That’s what I want.” Calum tells him, nudging the bottle of lube closer to Michael with his foot. The container rolls against his thigh, and Michael chuckles, picking it up and opening it as he rests on his knees on the bed, walking forward on them until he’s sat between Calum’s legs, the boy’s thighs draped around his own. The bottle makes a horrific squelching noise when Michael squeezes out some of the lube, and he gives Calum an apologetic wince. Calum just shrugs, wiggling closer.

Michael coats his fingers with the substance, cringing at the initial coolness of it. He works it until it warms in his hand, and only then does he bring one of his fingers down to slide between Calum’s cheeks, ghosting over his hole.

Calum shudders instantly at the sensation, and Michael shushes him even though he hasn’t made any sound, really. He trails his dry hand up and down the inside of Calum’s thigh, just to keep some kind of contact, and Calum instantly reaches down to grab onto his hand. It’s so sweet Michael could cry.

“Should I—” Michael starts, and Calum cuts him off with a nod.

It’s when Michael starts twisting his first finger in that he wonders if maybe they should’ve dedicated a whole day just to the whole fingering thing, to see if Calum was even into it. He suspects Calum’s done it to himself before, considering how relaxed Calum is once Michael’s finger is in up to his knuckle, but still.

“How’re you doing?” Michael asks, squeezing Calum’s hand. Calum just huffs, squeezing his hand right back and shifting his hips around slightly, restlessly.

“I’m good. S’just new. Not bad, though.” Calum answers, his eyes slipping shut when Michael starts to rock his finger experimentally. Calum’s so tight and warm around his finger, Michael can’t breathe properly for a few seconds when he thinks about how he’s _possibly_ gonna fit his cock in there. “I think you can do another.”

Michael nods, biting his lip gently. “Let me know if it’s too much. We can stop whenever.”

Calum’s eyes shoot open, and he shakes his head like that’s the worst thing Michael’s ever said to him. “No,” he whines, “don’t want you to _stop_.”

Michael huffs, smiling and pulling his hand away from Calum’s to swat at his thigh in reprimand. “You have to promise you’ll tell me to stop if you need me to.”

Calum pouts, but Michael knows he understands. They had a variation of this same conversation months and months ago, when they started fooling around for the first time. This just another kind of first. “I will, I swear. Don’t want you to now, though, so pretty please, put another finger in my ass?”

Michael laughs at Calum’s sass, shaking his head and leaning forward to kiss Calum’s cheek sloppily before he pulls back into his previous position. He resists the urge to coo when Calum delicately slides their hands together again, clearly craving the comfort it offers, no matter how cheeky he’s being.

He indulges Calum, pulling his finger out just enough to rub excess lube on the second, and then he’s pushing back in with two, much slower and more delicately than before. Calum’s whole body tenses, but it doesn’t seem like it’s in a bad way, since his dick visibly twitches where it’s resting back against his tummy.

“Feel good?” Michael asks, one eyebrow quirked and a smirk pulling at his lips.

Calum doesn’t even bitch at him for teasing, just nods, head dropped back and mouth parted as he sighs loudly. Michael hums, scissoring his fingers to stretch his boy out, curling them experimentally. He knows finding Calum’s prostate will make the whole thing leaps and bounds better for the younger boy, but he also hadn’t anticipated it would be like a literal scavenger hunt.

What he’s doing can’t be _bad_ , though, considering that Calum’s panting out these soft little curses and clenching down around Michael’s fingers every time he pulls them almost all the way out like he can’t bear the thought of not having them inside him anymore.

“Still good?” Michael clarifies, and Calum smiles up at him reassuringly.

“Perfect.” Calum whispers. “I told you it would be.”

Michael smiles back, because he can’t deny Calum’s right about that. It sure as hell feels perfect, even if they haven’t officially done the deed yet. Michael’s never felt more in love than he does right now, with Calum staring up at him all vulnerable and simultaneously sinful. He’s perfect, so perfect for Michael.

“Yeah, you sure did.” Michael says. “Should I go one more?”

Calum cocks his head slightly, like he’s thinking about it, before he nods affirmatively. “Yeah. One more and then we—we can—”

He starts tripping over his words in his eagerness, and Michael wants to scream because there’s no way one person can be so sexy and so _adorable_ at the same exact time.

“One more and then my cock?” Michael finishes for him, smirking when Calum moans softly. Calum breathes out something that sounds like _yes_ , and Michael takes that as his cue to start pressing a third finger in. Calum’s squeezing around him in a vice grip, somehow still so hard even though Michael’s sure it can’t be an amazing feeling since it’s still so new. Calum’s remarkable—Michael loves him so damn much.

Michael’s just curling his fingers absentmindedly, same as he was before, when Calum’s whole spine suddenly arches, a whine bursting from his lips, and Michael’s eyes instantly widen. He takes a second to realize what must’ve happened, and once he figures it out, he twists his fingers in a similar manner, grinning when Calum lets go of Michael’s hand in order to squeeze at the base of his own cock instead.

Michael shifts on his knees, adjusting his leverage, and he keeps on scissoring his fingers and rubbing the pads of them against the spot that’s making Calum lose it like this. Calum’s whimpering continuously, little _fuck_ s and _please_ s escaping him every now and then. His free hand shoots down to grip Michael’s forearm, stilling his movements, and when Michael quirks an eyebrow Calum just shakes his head, looking mildly terrified.

“Close.” Is all Calum manages, but it’s all Michael needs to hear to know what Calum is hinting at. He pulls his fingers out, watching in amazement as Calum’s body relaxes back against the sheets. The boy is leaking all over his stomach, and Michael fights the overwhelming urge to lean down and lick it all up. Now isn’t the time, probably.

Calum watches with sparkling eyes as Michael wipes his hand off on the sheets and grabs one of the foil packets from off to the side. He forgoes opening it with his teeth or anything in attempt to make it sexy—deciding it’s better to not ruin the pretty perfectly set mood by doing something lame like ripping a condom in half—and opts for just trying to tear it quickly with his fingers.

The odds are finally in their favor, apparently, since the foil tears flawlessly, and Michael’s thrilled that he finally looks somewhat sexually competent.

He holds his breath as he rolls the condom down over his cock, the brief contact causing his stomach muscles to spasm slightly. Calum clearly notices, giggling and reaching out to stroke his thumb over Michael’s hand gently. Michael chuckles, sticking his tongue out at the younger boy and reveling in the entrancing laugh Calum gives him in return.

“Beautiful dork.” Calum says, and Michael shrugs his agreement as he shuffles in closer, letting Calum trap him in between his thighs once more. He’s balancing his weight on his hands, placed beside Calum’s shoulders, and it’s in that moment that Michael’s positive time completely stops.

This is it. After so much effort, after so much waiting, they’re finally doing this. Finally going all the way, finally having this special moment together that they’ve been wanting for so long.

Michael’s stunned by Calum’s beauty—always is, really, but _especially_ right now. The younger boy is staring up at him, his brown eyes sparkling and brown skin practically glowing. It might be from the thin sheen of sweat that’s coating his skin, but nonetheless.

“Fuck, you’re stunning.” Michael whispers.

Calum blushes, but he doesn’t look away from Michael like he normally would at something cheesy and heartfelt like that. “Not as lovely as you.”

Michael closes the gap, kissing his boy sweetly, and Calum wraps one of his hands around Michael’s neck, playing gently in the hair at the nape. “Ready?” He asks after a minute, once Calum finally loosens his grip and allows Michael to pull back a bit.

“Always ready.” Calum says stoically, and Michael snickers.

He looks away for a moment, just long enough to reach down and line himself up with Calum’s hole, but the very _second_ he starts pushing in, his eyes are darting back up to Calum’s, determined to make sure they’re right there with each other the entire time. Calum seems to have a similar idea, since he adjusts his grip on the back of Michael’s neck, pulling him in so they can rest their foreheads together.

Michael can’t breathe, he _can’t_ , the air sucked right out of him with how _tight_ Calum feels around him. So soft and tight and warm—Calum literally feels like Michael imagines _heaven_ might.

“ _Fuck_.” Calum mewls, sounding so _small_. Michael feels like shit, so scared he’s hurting the love of his life, but before he can pull out and call the whole thing off, Calum’s wrapping his calf around Michael’s waist, preventing him from doing so. “Don’t. Keep going.”

Michael nods, peppering a kiss to the corner of Calum’s mouth and scattering a couple more of them along the boy’s jaw before he brings his head back up to rest against Calum’s again. He can tell how hard Calum’s trying to keep his eyes open, and he truly admires the effort his boy is making to maintain the eye contact.

“You’re doing so well.” Michael murmurs, collapsing down onto his forearms so they’re even closer. It’s not that easy to move like this, with Calum’s legs entrapping him and their chests flush, but that’s okay. Michael sort of needs it to be like this right now, this time. He’s pretty sure Calum needs the same thing, if his gentle whimper of approval is anything to go by.

The hand that’s not holding Michael’s neck slides around to his back, nails digging into the middle of it, and Michael nearly sobs in pleasure. He’s finally all the way in, hips snug against Calum’s ass, and the way Calum’s muscles keep fluttering around him like they don’t know what to do with Michael’s cock there is almost enough to make him come before he’s even properly fucked his boy.

“Move?” Calum suggests, and Michael nods, keeping their mouths centimeters apart so that Calum can kiss him through it when he pulls his hips back, rocking them forward again. The friction is so _good_ , better than anything Michael thinks he’s ever felt, and he’s pretty sure he could die right now. What a way to go, this would be.

“M’so lucky.” Michael gasps nonsensically, picking up his speed slightly. Calum whimpers into the space between their mouths, starting to work his hips back in the same rhythm he’d created earlier on Michael’s fingers. “Can’t believe you’re letting me have this. So amazing, Cal.”

Calum shushes him, petting at his hair comfortingly. Michael feels like he’s shattering, fucking falling apart, and he buries his face in Calum’s neck before he does something totally lame like c _ry_ while he’s balls deep.

“You feel so good, babe.” Calum says softly, his voice sounding like he’s miles and miles away. Michael sort of loves the idea that he’s pushed Calum into an other-worldly experience like this. “Gonna come so quick.”

Michael isn’t sure if Calum’s talking about Michael or himself, but he guesses that both possibilities are pretty damn true. Michael’s been on the verge of coming for what feels like ages—Calum even longer, probably—and each squeeze of Calum around him just shoves him closer and closer to the edge.

With a newfound energy, Michael readjusts his balance on his arms, pulling his face out of Calum’s neck to look down at the boy’s face when he starts fucking into him faster. Not harder, yet, because he doesn’t want to _break_ him or anything, but gradually picking up the speed of his hips and encouraging Calum to roll his own to match the rhythm.

He can tell he’s found the spot again when Calum starts shaking, his eyes squeezing shut and mouth dropping open on a long, drawn out groan of Michael’s name. He keeps working that angle, determination flaring up in his stomach, and he feels pride fill his chest when Calum reaches down between their stomachs to fist his cock desperately.

“Fuck, gonna—gonna—” Calum cries, and Michael nods eagerly, still painfully divided between watching Calum’s face or his cock when the boy suddenly goes still, eyebrows knitted high on his forehead and a tortured sob tearing out of his chest just before he comes all over his fist and chest.

Michael just moans desperately at the sight of it all, kissing Calum like his life fucking depends on it before he thrusts into his boy a couple more times, allowing the tight squeeze of Calum around him to yank the orgasm right out of him. Calum whispers sweet nothings to him through the whole thing, the hand on his back rubbing soothing circles into the muscles as Michael shakes and whimpers against him, overwhelmed. He imagines Calum must feel this same thing times, like, a hundred.

“Jesus—that was—you’re so.” Michael gasps, and Calum laughs a little hysterically.

Once he regains the ability to operate his muscles, Michael pulls out, apologizing softly as Calum hisses in discomfort. He takes the condom off, tying it off carefully before he leans over the edge of the bed to drop it in the wastebasket beside the nightstand. There’s a box of tissues on the nightstand, too, so Michael grabs a handful of them in lieu of the trip to the bathroom to get a damp washcloth that he’s admittedly too lazy to take.

Calum doesn’t seem to mind, dropping his hands to his side as Michael does a decent job of cleaning up his stomach and chest. His whole body jerks from oversensitivity when Michael teasingly brushes over his softening cock, and he punches Michael’s shoulder weakly to reprimand him for it.

He tosses the tissues into the wastebasket, too, laughing as Calum immediately pulls the older boy back against him, wrapping his limbs around Michael like he’s a koala, or something. Michael has to wrestle him off, Calum cracking up the whole time, until they finally settle against the pillows, Michael on his back and Calum curled into his side, their legs entwined comfortably.

“Hey.” Calum whispers, trailing his fingers over Michael’s chest.

Michael hums, his eyes repeatedly slipping closed of their own accord. He’s having a hell of a time keeping them open anymore, spent.

“Thank you.”

Michael opens one eye, peering down at the younger boy, who’s watching his own fingers trace over Michael’s pale skin. “You don’t need to thank me.” Michael says. “I should be thanking _you_.”

Calum giggles, kissing Michael’s chest, right over his heart. Michael resists the urge to _aww_ out loud at his sweetness. “I meant for, like. Caring so much, and stuff. For wanting to make it special. It means a lot knowing I mean that much to you.”

The older boy rolls over until they’re both lying on their sides, face to face. He reaches up, trailing the backs of his fingers along Calum’s cheeks before he brushes the boy’s curls away from his face and leans in to kiss his forehead.

“You’re the best thing I know.” Michael says genuinely, and Calum blushes. To lighten the mood slightly, Michael adds: “Can’t believe you stuck with me through all our bad luck. I was convinced we’d never end up here.”

Calum makes a humiliated sound that’s a cross between a groan and a laugh, burying his face in Michael’s neck as he clearly remembers all of the horrifically embarrassing moments that have led up to tonight. When he’s gotten the unfortunate reminiscing out of his system, he pulls back, still smiling, and Michael’s never felt so fond of one person in his whole life.

“I’m happy that it was with you.” Calum says after a long moment of silence. “My first time, I mean. First everything, really.”

Michael smiles, caressing Calum’s jaw. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Calum says honestly, his eyes sparkling. “I wouldn’t have wanted anyone else.”

“Me either.” Michael agrees, and he swears his chest is about to burst with all of the love and happiness stirring around inside him. That’s to be expected, though. He’s _always_ unbearably happy around Calum. The boy’s something like his soulmate, after all.

(He can tell Calum’s about to ruin the whole moment as soon as the boy smirks, but Michael’s too tired to stop him, and Calum easily gets out, “I’m so glad you were destined to get your dick in me, after all.”)

**Author's Note:**

> Come visit me on [tumblr](http://dafeedil.tumblr.com), but also stop by my girl [Emi](http://lucasashtons.tumblr.com) and make sure you send her a nice lil happy birthday message!!!


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